This invention relates generally to modular, watertight decks and more specifically to modular decks for pontoon boats.
Typical pontoon boats have two long pontoons, on top of which a deck is overlaid. The deck is usually constructed of marine-grade plywood and is attached to the pontoons using a Z- or C-bar frame, the latter being the current preferred method. The plywood deck design suffers from several deficiencies. Plywood decks require wave shields to lessen upward seepage through the seams of the deck. Such seepage causes wet spots on the carpeted floors of pontoon boats and wood rot, and the wave shield adds weight to the boat. The invention solves the seepage problem by creating a watertight deck and eliminates the need for a wave shield.
Another deficiency in plywood-decked pontoon boats is the flex at the frame mounting points when the boat is moving through rough water. Said flex causes the pontoons to deviate from the desired parallel pontoon track. The structural rigidity provided by the invention dictates that the pontoons maintain a parallel track even in rough water.
Because a plywood deck requires a frame, the deck height of a boat with such a frame is higher than the deck height of a boat with the deck herein disclosed. The consequences of a lower deck are a lower center of gravity. For pontoon boats, a lower center of gravity results in better planing characteristics. In addition to deck height, the weight savings of an extruded metal deck (22% for the preferred embodiment that uses aluminum) also increases boat performance.
Finally, the assembly of pontoon boats using the disclosed invention rather than plywood decks is easier and faster, thus requiring less labor than traditional methods of pontoon boat construction.